


Lost and Found

by Fandom_Trash224



Series: Earth-224 [2]
Category: DCU
Genre: Bittersweet, Early Batman Bruce Wayne, Gen, Hugs, Minor Character Death, Reunions, Trauma, and by early i literally mean the first bit is like a week or so before batman starts popping up, could argue this is part of ollie's origin story, once more pushing my heroes being friends agenda
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-29
Updated: 2020-07-29
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:41:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,150
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25583035
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fandom_Trash224/pseuds/Fandom_Trash224
Summary: “Bruce Wayne, you son of a bitch!”Bruce turned around, a slight smirk on his face as he looked down to see the absolutely fuming form of Oliver Queen.“Hello to you too, Oliver,” Bruce said simply.alternatively titled "the first time oliver and bruce reunited vs the second time"(takes place in personal au, Earth-224)
Relationships: Oliver Queen & Bruce Wayne
Series: Earth-224 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1851106
Comments: 6
Kudos: 85





	Lost and Found

**Author's Note:**

> howdy! so. some background for this one
> 
> Bruce is 22 when this fic begins, and Oliver is three years older at 25. They knew each other growing up. 
> 
> Bruce is about to begin his Batman career, and obvs Oliver hasn't even had his proper "origin story" yet. 
> 
> Oliver's parents are both alive at the start, but his relationship with them is strained. He mostly stays on their good side to keep the money flowing.

“Bruce Wayne, you son of a bitch!”

Bruce turned around, a slight smirk on his face as he looked down to see the absolutely  _ fuming _ form of Oliver Queen.

“Hello to you too, Oliver,” Bruce said simply. If there was one thing he had found himself missing during his time abroad, it was messing with the other multi-millionaire. “Glad to see you could make it.”

“Oh, sure, wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Oliver said bitterly. “Of course, when I decided to come, I didn’t realize that I’d be coming to a party hosted by a  _ fucking giant _ .”

“Oh please, I’m only about four inches taller than you. I hit my last growth spurt late. I’m fairly sure I was somewhere in the Himalayas when it happened…” 

“Oh fuck you,” Oliver said, but there wasn’t any  _ true _ malice behind it. “Traitor.”

Bruce actually let out a slight laugh at that, surprising himself more than anybody else. He couldn’t remember the last time he had actually allowed himself to properly laugh. 

“Well,  _ somebody _ doesn’t want to hear about the month or so I spent working on a fishing barge.”

“That reminds me,” Oliver said, sipping from his drink. “My dad’s hosting a yacht party next weekend, planning to spend a few days sailing through the Pacific. I was wondering if you’d want to join us, get back into the game a bit more, maybe catch up.”

Bruce’s smile faltered. “Sorry, Ollie. I’ve been gone so long, there’s too much to be done around here. Another time, maybe.”

“Once a workaholic, always a workaholic,” Oliver sighed out, “Well, if you change your mind, we’re leaving next Friday morning from our harbor in Star City. Think about it, okay?”

“Of course,” Bruce lied, “I’ll see what I can do. But in case I don’t make it… be careful, okay?”

“Brucie,  _ baby _ , you know who you’re talking to, right?” Oliver spread his arms wide, a cocky grin on his face. “I’ve been walking on eggshells my whole  _ life _ . I think I’ll be okay for a weekend.”

That wasn’t…  _ quite _ what Bruce had meant. What he  _ meant _ was that ships were going missing in the Pacific, the news even going so far as to call it “The Pacific Triangle”, and that Queen family yacht parties didn’t tend to have the most vigilant people aboard them. For a moment, Bruce almost considered agreeing to go, if only to keep anything bad from happening, but…

“Yeah,” Bruce said, forcing a smile back onto his face. “Yeah, you’re right. I hope you have fun, Ollie.”

“I’m sure I will. Now, what’s this about you working on a  _ fishing barge _ ?”

\---

“--after the survivors were rescued, they were questioned on the potential whereabouts of the other party-goers, particularly the whereabouts of the doomed party’s hosts, Robert and Moira Queen, as well as their son Oliver. Currently, no leads have been found. We will continue to monitor the story as it unfolds--”

The television turned off with a quiet click, and Bruce didn’t need to turn around to know what had happened. 

“It wasn’t your fault, Master Bruce,” Alfred said quietly, laying a single hand on top of Bruce’s shoulder. “Even if you  _ had _ gone, you could very well have ended up like the rest of them.”

Logically, Bruce knew Alfred was right, but logic rarely won out in situations like that. Situations where it’s been five days since his friend left the mainland to go partying in the Pacific, and apparently been  _ missing _ for almost three of those five days. 

When logic stopped making sense, Bruce did the only thing he could do.

“I’ll be down in the cave,” Bruce said, walking past Alfred, “I’ll let you know if I decide to go out tonight”

\---

“Hello! This is the Queen Industries helpline, my name is Vicki, how can I assist you?”

Oliver had to pause for a moment, basking in the voice of another person. After nearly  _ two years _ alone, surviving on an island with nothing but the clothes on his back, a bow and arrow, and whatever else he could find on the island, having other people around, just  _ seeing  _ them… It was surreal. Overwhelming, almost.

“Hello? Are you still there?” The operator asked, and Oliver inhaled sharply. 

“Yeah, I’m uh--” Oliver took a deep breath and let it go. “I’m here. Sorry.”

“It’s alright sir, what can I help you with?”

“Right. Is there any chance you could tell me if Maria Queen still works there?”

“I’m sorry sir,” Vicki said, which Oliver knew she would. “I’m not at liberty to disclose the employment status of--”

“This is a Code Hue, authorization code ‘O-Q-Zero-One’,” Oliver interrupted, saying it almost robotically. “I need to know if Maria Queen still works there or not, or at least if she’s at a different extension.”

A pause. Likely her checking with the higher-ups, maybe even a bit of shock. Few people actually knew the code system at Queen Industries, and even fewer knew the authorization code. Really, only  _ three _ people had the authority to put in a Code Hue, and after that  _ hellish _ night… only one was left alive.

Though, after two years, most people probably thought all three were gone. 

“I… Mr. Queen, I can’t believe you’re… I’m sorry,” Vicki cleared her throat over the line. “Maria still works here. She should still be in her office, I can transfer you if you’d like?”

“ _ Please _ .”

“One moment. Oh and, uh… Welcome back, Mr. Queen.”

Hold music. Oliver felt like his stomach was a pit filled with butterflies. 

“Hello, this is Maria Queen speaking.”

Oliver couldn’t hold back the delighted gasp that escaped him, tears welling up in his eyes. As he spoke, his voice shook, “Aunt Maria? It’s… It’s Oliver.”

A pause, and then, “Oh my god. Ollie?”

“Yeah,” Oliver’s voice broke, the simple nickname completely crushing any sort of wall he had left. “It’s me.”

“ _ Ollie _ ,” Maria sobbed out, “Oh my god, my boy-- Are your parents there? How are they?”

“They didn’t make it,” Oliver whispered, “I was… I’m  _ sorry _ \--”

“Shh, it’s okay. You’re alive, you made it. Where are you?”

Oliver could hear shuffling on the other side of the line, hushed talking, and Oliver had to take a deep breath before responding.

“I… Somewhere in the Pacific still. A boat passed by the island I was trapped on, and I managed to signal them.”

“Do you know where you’re headed?”

“Coast City, I think. Pier, uh… Pier 13. They said we’ll be there in a couple of days.”

“Then so will I,” Maria said quietly, “Oh god,  _ Ollie _ … I thought I’d never hear your voice again.”

“Me too,” Oliver took a shaky breath, “I have to go. I love you Aunt Maria, I’ll-- I’ll see you soon, okay? I will.”

After a quick goodbye from her, he hung up. 

He would see her. He  _ would _ . He made it that far, he was going  _ home _ , he was  _ finally _ going home.

As he handed the phone back to the fisherman, his hands shook, and he finally allowed himself to just  _ cry _ in relief. 

\---

“It’s weird,” Oliver began quietly as the person approached from behind. He was leaning against a balcony, staring out into the skyline of Star City,  _ his _ city. “I had almost forgotten that you couldn’t see the stars in the city. Kinda ironic, considering the name.”

“ _ Oliver _ ,” Bruce’s voice sounded restrained, like a pipe with a blockage slowly building up pressure behind it until it was about to burst. 

Oliver smiled, his eyes watering slightly as he turned around. “Hey Bruce.” 

Bruce’s mouth hung open slightly as he slowly approached Oliver, his eyes vulnerable in a way the younger man hid from most others. It was a look Oliver knew well, however, and he was rather proud of that fact.

Bruce didn’t quite seem to know what to do with his hands, hovering them over Oliver’s shoulders before pulling them back, and then hovering them again. He repeated the motion a couple of times before finally just shoving his hands into his pants pockets, swallowing thickly with a shaky smile.

“I’m glad you finally decided to come back from the dead,” Bruce said, “I mean, who else am I supposed to make fun of to their face?”

“You could always try Luthor, but I guess he’d just find some way to make your death look like an accident.”

“Yeah,” Bruce said with a chuckle, but it was flat, almost humorless. 

Oliver took a step forward, stopping for just a moment before crushing Bruce in a hug. His skin buzzed where it made contact with Bruce through the material of their button-ups, and Oliver couldn’t stop himself from tightening his grip slightly. Bruce stiffened for a moment before relaxing, gently returning the embrace.

“I’m sorry, I just--”

“You’re touch-starved,” Bruce said quietly, “I get it. Take as long as you need.”

“I’m home,” Oliver said softly, “I thought I’d never be home again.”

Oliver was crying now, right into Bruce’s nice shirt, but knowing Bruce, he probably had three backup shirts stored somewhere nearby to change into. The man was prepared for  _ anything _ . Something about a response to trauma.

Guess that was another thing he and Bruce now had in common. 

Oliver finally forced himself to pull away, though he was very reluctant to do so. He wiped the tears from his face, sniffling hard. Maria had put some work into helping him look a bit more presentable, and he didn’t want to ruin it. 

Per his request, his hair had been cut from  _ long and tangled _ to something closer to  _ medium and shaggy _ . He also had his beard entirely shaved off, though he had been a bit more reluctant about that one. Honestly, part of him figured if he just trimmed it up a bit, it would’ve been fine. Maybe even styling it, like a goatee. Most importantly, though, he didn’t smell like he had just spent two years on a deserted island and a couple of days on a fishing barge anymore.

Even with Maria being the  _ nicest _ of his still-alive-and-talking-to-him family members, and Oliver being the so-called “rebellious child” of the Queen family line, they both knew how important keeping up appearances was. At least until the media storm surrounding Oliver’s “miraculous return” died down.

“How’s Gotham?” Oliver asked in an attempt to change the subject. “Any luck with turning that cesspool into a gleaming utopia?”

“You’ve only been gone two years Oliver,” Bruce said dryly, though there was still a slight smile on his face. “I’m good, but I’m not a miracle-worker.”

“Hey, a lot can change in two years. I mean, I leave town, and suddenly there’s a bat-furry jumping across your rooftops and fighting crime. I hear he even has a little buddy now.”

Bruce looked like he almost choked on air at the words “bat-furry”, but when he mentioned the little buddy, Bruce’s face practically lit up in a way that Oliver could only describe as  _ childish glee _ . 

“Speaking of little buddies… Ollie, I’ve got someone I’d like to introduce you to,” Bruce stepped back into the building for a moment, motioning for someone to come over, and when he stepped back out into the open air, Oliver almost lost his mind. “Oliver, this is Richard Grayson. My new ward.”

Bruce’s new ward,  _ Richard _ , was like a tiny clone of Bruce. Dark hair, blue eyes, but unlike Bruce, the kid practically  _ radiated _ a cheerful, maybe even  _ mischievous  _ energy. It almost made Oliver want to ruffle the kid’s hair, but considering they had just met, Oliver figured it was probably a bad idea. 

Mini-Bruce held out a hand for Oliver to shake. “It’s nice to meet you, Mister Queen. And please, call me Dick!”

Oliver nodded, shaking Dick’s hand. He had met plenty of people named Dick before, but he also knew that if he had been a few years younger, he would’ve lost his shit. 

“It’s nice to meet you, too, Dick,” Oliver said, throwing the kid a smile before looking back up at Bruce. “Never pegged you for the fatherly type.”

“It’s… a bit of a long story. I’ll tell you later,” Bruce said, “I’m just glad you’re doing okay. We’ve got to get going, we have a flight back to Gotham early tomorrow, and it’s already getting to be past Dick’s bedtime.”

“See, that right there. I could’ve  _ never _ imagined you saying something like that. That shit’s straight-up  _ paternal _ .  _ And _ you’re only twenty-four.”

“ _ Goodnight _ , Oliver.”

“Goodnight, man. Oh, and Bruce?” Oliver called out as the pair began to walk away. Bruce turned to look at Oliver for a moment, an eyebrow raised. “Be careful when you get back. Wouldn’t want the furry to attack or anything.”

Bruce rolled his eyes as Dick laughed, and the two finally left Oliver alone on the balcony with the starless sky once more. 

**Author's Note:**

> yell at me on tumblr!
> 
> dc: gothamhell.tumblr.com  
> main: fandom-trash224.tumblr.com


End file.
